Labels: Keep It Together
Review by: Oli Saunders
I’ve not managed to listen to much music besides MP3s recently so it’s nice to sit down on this Sunday afternoon and review this tape. The label that has sent this to be reviewed tantalise me with a free beer coupon for doing so, provided I go to the US to redeem it!
Sleep Bellum Sonno play on side A. I briefly encountered these guys a little while ago when I heard a few tracks from their demo. Back then I thought they sounded a bit like Bright Calm Blue but just not as good. Note that this isn’t a significant criticism, since I rate BCB very highly. In any case, with these new tracks, SBS retain some of these previous sensibilities, particularly on the first track ‘O’ The Wonderful Ways…’, but incorporate many other features in addition. The song slows down at the halfway point and a piano interjects. Later on a horn and what I think is a clarinet both play a part too. There are a mixture of shouted and sung vocals that seem to be full of worry and regret. Very interesting and ambitious, and it works to some extent, but doesn’t quite fit my one-dimensional emo music tastes. The second song is a more mellow affair and continues to involve a range of styles.
Warren Franklin is on the other side, playing acoustic folk with some punk influences. He races through the first track before there are three recordings of live tracks. The songs themselves are okay but I am put off a bit by the rough recordings – I think they would be much improved with a better lo-fi setup. The final track ‘Lutmer Sings Franklin!’ reverts to this and is my favourite by far. This one reminds me of The One AM Radio a little bit – it’s a very slow and mellow folk track that gets everything right.
Overall, they both need some improving to get me excited about them, but these two are pretty promising.
3rd October 2010